Page 128 of Rah

I let out a shaky sigh as I sank back into my chair. My whole chest felt hot with a weird blend of gratefulness and embarrassment. I wanted him gone, but I also didn’t want to be here without him.

So, I stayed quiet. And he stayed put.

AALIYAH

I was sweating profusely as I walked into a courtroom being led to the witness stand by a bailiff. Solae’s lawyer had promised to try to close the court during my testimony for my safety, but he had failed to prove any immediate danger. So, Rah was there, glaring at me and seething. I knew that if he could, he would have killed me right then. I just kept reminding myself that he couldn’t have brought a gun into the courthouse and that none of the bailiffs would let him get to me.

As I walked past the small crowd, I saw his parents, who were still in the courtroom, staring a hole in my face. His father had always had this intimidating stare, much like Rah, making me cringe under his eyesight.

I was trying to find someone to focus on as they swore me in, but there was no one. To help protect me, Fabe had to stay home. I didn’t want anyone in his family noticing anything between us, even from a distance.

“Do you solemnly swear that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?”

Nervously, I replied, “I do.”

“You may be seated. Please state your name for the record.”

“A-aaliyah Grant,” I stuttered.

I fought the nerves. I wanted to do this. After thinking on it for a few days, I was even more determined to do this. I hadn’t known that Solae was his main chick. When she had come to my house on Christmas, I was so rude to her, without even knowing. Now knowing that she also was suffering from having her kids taken away from her around that time, I felt terrible for how I had treated her. Without knowing, I was a part of this woman’s pain. I wasn’t that type of chick. So, I wanted to do something to make it right.

As Solae’s lawyer started to question me, I answered them just as we had practiced during our meeting the day before. When he brought the picture of my swollen, black eye up on the projector, I watched as a few people cringed, even Solae. But Rah still sat there, haughty and with no sympathy in his eyes.

“Thank you, Aaliyah. The defense rests, Your Honor.”

As Solae’s lawyer returned to his seat, I nervously waited to see if the prosecution would question me. Solae’s lawyer had said that there was a chance he wouldn’t, to attempt to save as much of his case as my testimony had destroyed.

But before the judge could ask, there was a squeal heard through the courtroom, shrieking, “He hit me too!”

Gasps could be heard as everyone’s eyes tried to find the source of the voice. My eyes landed on a girl with Solae’s face as she clung to a much older man that was trying to quiet her. But she kept talking as tears fell down her face.

“He hit me!” she shrieked again. “He smacked me so hard. Please don’t take my mama to jail. I don’t want him to raise me and my brother! I want myMommyyyyy!”

Mayhem ensued. The much older man and much older woman on the other side of who I now knew to be Essence, were trying to soothe her. Murmurs and gasps could be heard throughout the courtroom. Solae jumped to her feet and tried to go soothe her daughter, but her lawyer made her stay seated.

The judge began to bang his gavel. “That’s enough!”

Everyone in the courtroom froze as we stared at the judge, not believing what had unfolded just that fast. All was quiet except Essence’s sobs.

“Take that child out of here and take care of her,” the judge ordered.

The much older man and woman quickly stood and literally carried Essence away because her legs were so weak, as she sobbed uncontrollably. A little boy, who I assumed was Elijah, followed them crying silently. Solae was all the way turned in her seat at the defense’s table watching them. I could see in her eyes the desperation to be with her kids. When they were finally gone, she turned back around and cried into her hands.

The judge blew a heavy sigh and said with obvious irritation all over his voice, “Does the prosecution have any questions for the witness?”

The prosecutor quickly shook his head while his hand combed his forehead. “No.”

“Miss Grant,” the judge told me, “You are excused.”

I was happy to stand as the bailiff came to escort me out of the courtroom. I appreciated his presence by my side because Rah’s glare had turned into a rage that I had never seen in his eyes before. His eyes followed me all the way out of the courtroom. Even once outside, I feared for my safety. The bailiff was taking me all the way to my car, but I knew that after seeing the rage in Rah’s eyes, I would never totally feel safe again.

SOLAE

I was still so emotional about what had just happened in that courtroom. I’d known Aaliyah would testify for me but watching her actually do it was so humbling. She didn’t owe me that. After everything Rah had done, she could’ve stayed silent. Instead, she stood on the truth, and that touched me in a way I couldn’t put into words.

And then Essence…My heart had nearly split in half. I wanted to run to her, hold and comfort her, but all I could do was sit there chained by the rules. Watching my daughter confess something she should’ve never had to even live through left me aching from the inside out.

I felt a hot, ugly swell of anger. Not only had my little girl been ruined because of Rah’s lies and games, now her father had put his hands on her. Some wrongs deserved punishment, sure, but I knew Rah hadn’t just spanked her. Her tears told me that he had acted out of cruelty and maliciousness. I couldn’t sit in that chair, fold my hands, and look sorry for what I’d done. I now wished I had finished what I started.I wanted him gone. He’d made monsters of the people who loved him, and I wanted that to stop for good.